Asheville Greenworks of Buncombe County – Program Spotlight: Urban Forestry

Here at GreenWorks, we know that trees contribute to a better quality of life. Trees provide oxygen, improve air and water quality, reduce stormwater management costs, and offer important habitat to urban wildlife. In addition, studies show that they promote greater physical activity, reduce stress and improve mental health, and even lead to reduced crime rates.

Asheville GreenWorks is committed to bringing these benefits (and more!) to our local communities through programs that increase our urban tree canopy and improve public access to greenspace. You can read about each of our Urban Forestry projects below, and click any of the photos below to find out more about a project.

Food Tree Project

The Food Tree Project works in partnership with communities in Buncombe County that lack access to fresh, healthy food options. We currently have 9 edible orchards providing residents with apples, pears, cherries, quinces, pawpaws, blueberries, and hazelnuts.

Tree Nursery

GreenWorks has established two native tree nurseries — one that supports our food tree project, and the other to grow trees suitable for streambank restoration. We’ve set an ambitious goal to plant 800 trees a year, but trees are expensive! This helps expand our community reach by lowering program costs.

Bee City USA – Asheville

Did you know Asheville became the first ever Bee City USA in 2012? In 2016, Bee City USA handed over the reins for the Asheville chapter to GreenWorks in order to shift focus to growing the national network.​Under GreenWorks’ leadership, Asheville continues to deepen its commitment to being a model city for supporting pollinator-friendly habitat. GreenWorks helps schools and communities establish pollinator gardens, encourages the planting of native species that attract pollinators, and coordinates Pollination Celebration Week in June each year.

Adopt-A-Spot

In partnership with the City of Asheville, GreenWorks manages a program for citizens to “adopt-a-spot” of public land, such as a small area of a park, a sidewalk “bulb out” or a section of greenway to maintain for three years. We encourage activities such as removing litter, weeding and spreading mulch, and planting perennial pollinators or edibles. GreenWorks provides guidance and support for any volunteers willing to put in the effort for taking care of a slice of their city.

Treasured Trees

Is there a tree in your community that you would like to recognize and protect? Consider nominating it for GreenWorks’ Treasured Tree program. Through this effort, we aim to bring public awareness to valuable and irreplaceable trees, Increase tree owners’ awareness of the unique importance of trees, encourage stewardship of our urban forest, protect trees from indiscriminate removal or irreparable damage during development, and raise awareness of the diversity, sensitivity and importance of the urban tree canopy.

Do you like what you see and want to help us inspire, equip and mobilize more people and projects in 2019? Click below and get involved!

SheVille Team

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“Villages preserve culture: dress, food and dance are a few examples. As villages grow in population and turn into towns, local cafes make way for large American chains. Handmade leather sandals are discarded for a pair of Western sneakers.
Due to its small size, a village fosters a tight-knit sense of community. Justpeace.org explains the meaning of the African proverb, “It takes a village,” by stating that a sense of community is critical to maintaining a healthy society.
Village members hold a wealth of information regarding their heritage: they know about the ancient traditions, methods of production and the resources of the land. When villages become dispersed or exterminated in times of war, this anthropological knowledge disappears.
Large cities are not as conducive to growing and producing foods such as fruits and vegetables. Villages, on the other hand, usually have ample amounts of land and other resources necessary for growing conditions.” The Importance of Villages by Catherine Capozzi
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